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Rev.  Chas.  N.  Sinnett 


Sketch  of  Chesterfield,  N.H. 
and  History 
of  the 
Congregational  Church 

1770  to    1900. 


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'  OCT    12 

Logical  *€? 


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'3ui  'soya  ayoiAVD 

Aq  pejni3D^nuDw 

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SKETCH  Or 

CHESTEPrifZLD,  N.  II. 

rOWNSHIP  NO.  ONE" 

AND  HISTORY 

or  THE 

©ongpegational   ©hupch 

ER0I1 

1770  TO    1900. 

13V  REV.  CHftS.  N.  SINNETT. 


^e/UL 


4  19] 
WIS 


HAVERHILL.   MASS., 

C.  C.   MORSE  &  SON. 

1902. 


&X  7  /  50 


JD 


SKETCH  OP        \ 

CHESTEREIELD,  N.  H. 

"TOWNSHIP  NO.  ONE" 

AND  HISTORY 

or  THE- 

ongpegational   ©hsiPGh 

ERON 

1770  TO    1900. 


°4 


BY  REV.  CHA5.  N.  SINNETT. 


HAVERHILL    MASS., 

C.  C.   MORSE  &  SON. 

1902. 


\J 


Historical    Sermon    of   the    First    Congregational 
Church  of  Chesterfield,   N.   II. 

It  seems  clear  that  the  First  Congregational  Church 
of  Chesterfield,  N.  H.,  was  organized  in  1771.  The 
oldest  records  of  the  church  were  lost,  and  so  the  special 
date  of  that  year  cannot  be  given.  It  is  also  certain 
that  a  church  building  was  erected  before  March,  1770. 

It  is  also  quite  as  clear  that  Col.  Josiah   Willard, 
the  leading  grantee  of  the  town,  caused   the  church  to 
be  built  on  a  large  and  hopeful  plan,   and   that   he   then 
presented  it  to  the  town.     But,  be   that  as  it  may,  it  is 
certain  that  the  frame  was  covered  and  the  building  fin- 
ished at  the  expense  of  the  town,  as  is  shown  in  the  rec- 
ords.     It  would   then   appear  that   the  wise  plans   of  a 
friend  were  heartily  entered  into  by  those  who  felt  that 
their  new  homes,  even  among  the  beauties  of  these  hills 
and  beside  the  shining  river,  would  not  be  truly  home- 
like unless  the   Lord's  house  crowned  the  hill,   in   the 
center  of  the  town.     That  they  builded  well  is  shown 
by  the  description  of  the  church  and  the  examination  of 
others  like  it  which  are  still  left  in  other  New   England 
towns.      For  upwards  of  four  score  years  it  stood,  and 
bitter  was  the  cry  in  the  town  when  the  people  were 
rudely  awakened  to  hear  the  roar  of  the  west  wind  upon 
the  hill  and  above  it  the  cry  of  "  Fire!  Fire!   Save   the 
Church!"     But  it  could  not  be  saved;   the  evil  hand  had 
done  its  work  well ;  already  tongues  of  fire  leaped  toward 


the  tall  spire  in  their  mad  haste.  On  the  doomed  build- 
ing rested  the  pall  of  smoke;  and  fiercer  came  the  gusts 
of  wind  from  the  cold,  icy  mountains  of  March. 

The  first  day  in  March,  185 1,  was  vividly  stamped 
on  the  minds  of  those  dwelling  in  the  old  town.  Many 
are  the  times  we  have  heard  the  story  of  the  fire,  which 
swept  away  that  place  of  so  many  hallowed  memories. 
But  you  have  as  clearly  heard  the  description  of  the 
building,  and  of  many  stirring  scenes  within  that  you 
have  been  made  aware  that  never  can  fire  or  flood  de- 
stroy that  which  hath  been  builded  in  the  name  of  the 
Lord.  The  frame-work  may  vanish  in  smoke  and  ashes 
but  that  which  is  of  more  value  than  many  sub  struct- 
ures stays  in  the  heart  for  its  continual  joy  and  strength. 

A  fine  picture  of  this  old  church  has  recently  been 
made  from  a  sketch  of  Judge  Hoyt  H.  Wheeler  of  Brat- 
tleboro,  Vt.  It  was  exhibited  at  our  recent  Old  Home 
Week  celebration.  We  hope  that  a  copy  of  it  may  soon 
be  placed  in  our  Town  Hall. 

The  best  printed  description  of  this  sacred  place  is 
by  our  careful  historian,  Oren  A.  Randall.  "This 
meeting-house,  or  the  old  meeting-house  as  it  was  called 
after  the  new  one  was  built,  was,  till  1830  the  only  meet- 
ino--house  in  the  town :  it  stood  about  thirty-five  feet 
south  of  the  present  town-house  and  was  about  sixty  feet 
long  and  forty-five  feet  wide.  It  was  two  stories  high, 
with  two  rows  of  windows  and  had  a  projecting  bell  tow- 
er on  the  west  end,  originally  however,  as  appears  from 
the  records  of  the  town,  there  was  a  porch  on  the  west 
end  also,  but  no  bell  tower;  for,  June  2,  181 5,  a  commit- 
tee was  chosen  to  sell  'pew  ground'  in  the  meeting-house, 
remove  the  west  porch  of  the  same,  and  use  the  pro- 
ceeds to  build  a  belfry,  according  to  a  vote  passed  by 
the  town,  March  10,  1807.  A  bell  was  also  purchased 
and  placed  in  the  belfry.      This  bell,  in  accordance  with 


3 

a  vole  oi  the  town,  passed  May  12,  1816,  was  rung  on 
week  days  at  noon  and  at  nine  o'clock  in  the  evening. 

The  principal  entrance  to  the  building  was  at  the 
middle  of  the  south  side.  From  this  entrance  a  broad 
aisle  led  to  the  pulpit,  which  was  located  in  the  middle 
of  the  north  side  of  the  building,  at  an  elevation  of  sev- 
eral feet  above  the  ground  floor.  Above  the  pulpit  hung 
the  sounding  board,  and  in  front  of  it  on  the  ground 
floor  was  an  enclosed  seat  called  the  Deacon's  seat. 
There  was  also  a  row  of  square  pews  next  to  the  wall 
extending  entirely  around  the  inside  of  the  house,  except 
at  the  entrance  passages  and  where  the  pulpit  stood. 
The  other  pews,  below,  were  arranged  about  in  the  same 
order  as  they  usually  were  in  meeting-houses  of  the  last 
century.  In  front  of  the  outer  row  of  pews,  or  wall  pews 
as  they  were  called,  was  a  continuous  aisle;  above,  there 
was  a  gallery  on  the  east  and  west  side  ends,  and  south 
side,  with  rows  of  pews.  For  very  many  years  there 
was  no  stove  in  the  building,  except  the  foot-stoves 
that  some  of  the  worshippers  used  to  carry  to  church 
with  them  in  cold  weather,  and  which  were  replenished 
during  the  intermission,  with  live  coals  at  the  neighbor- 
ing houses.  As  early  as  1780  the  town  voted  to  allow 
horse  sheds  to  be  built  on  the  north  side  of  the  common 
near  the  meeting-house;  and  in  1804,  to  allow  certain 
persons  to  build  sheds  along  the  west  side  of  the  old 
graveyard.  Between  the  east  end  of  the  meeting-house 
and  the  graveyard  was  a  large  horse  block,  an  indispen- 
sable thing  in  the  days  when  the  women  as  well  as  the 
men  used  to  go  to  church  on  horseback. 

Such  was  the  place  to  which  the  fathers  and  mothers 
and  the  little  ones  came  from  the  scattered  farms  and  log 
houses  in  the  villages  and  on  the  hills,  for  all  must  go  to 
church  in  those  clays;  even  those  who  were  somewhat 
feeble  there  was  made  a  Sabbath  pathway  to  the  church. 


It  had  been  well  planned  that  the  tall  tower  of  the  church 
should  catch  the  eyes  of  all  from  near  and  far.     The  tone 
of  the  big  bell  was  so  clear  that  even  deaf  ears  were  loth 
to  give  an  excuse  that  it  was  too  late  for  church,  for  they 
had  not  heard  the  first  bell  ring.      I  have  looked  over  the 
subscription  paper  which  was  used  in  securing  money 
for  the  bell,  and  it  clearly  indicates  that  the  strongest 
descriptions  which  we  have  heard  of  its  powers  were  not 
in  the  least  overdrawn.     So  much  was  it  loved  that  some 
of  its  metal  must  be  placed  in  the  bell  now  upon  the 
town  house.     The  first  name  on  the  subscription  paper 
was  that  of  Col.  Oliver  Brown,  brave  in  service  and  truth. 
As  we  speak  of  this  faithful  bell  which  hung  in  the 
tower  of  Chesterfield's  first  church  we  need  to  remember 
that  besides  the  calling  of  the  people  together  on  Sun- 
days it  had  other  duties  to  perform  which  carried  sorrow- 
ful notes  across  the  hills  and  far  beyond  the  river,  and 
that  sometimes  these  notes  were  many:  I  refer  to  the 
custom  of  tolling  the  bell  whenever  any  one  died  in  the 
town.     This  was  never  omitted.     There  was  a  stroke  of 
the  bell  for  each  year  of  the  deceased  person's  life ;  this 
custom  prevails  still  in  some  of  our  New  England  towns. 
It  was  last  heeded  here  on  the  death  of  one  of  our  aged 
citizens  in   1892.     Many  deplore  the  discontinuance  of 
this  custom,  especially  the  old  people.     They  say  pathet- 
ically, or  in  a  tone  in  which  there  is  a  hint  of  rebuke, 
"  The  people  are  so  careless  that  often  a  person  has  been 
buried  a  week  befere  I  have  even  heard  of  it !     In  the 
old  days  we  heard  of  this  to  the  far  limits  of  the  town, 
and  it  was  thought  the  decent  thing  then  to  go  to  the 
funerals  of  old  neighbors."     I  have  said  that  there  were 
many  strokes  some  days  which    rang    out    on    the    air, 
and  you  know  well  how  long  some  of  the  fathers  and 
mothers  came  up  this  hill  to  listen  to  the  word  of  God, 
and  yet  one  who  carefully  looks  over  our  old  cemetery 


5 
will  be  surprised  to  sec  how  many  little  ones  were  called 
up  to  the  shining  hills.  There  was  a  strong  hand  laid 
on  the  bell  rope.  Far  away  rolled  two  or  three  clear 
notes.  But  how  fast  the  tears  of  the  mother  fell  !  it  was 
to  her  as  if  the  bell  struck  a  hundred  peals,  and  often  she 
heard  them  in  the  bright  days  and  still  summer  nights 
Ond — two — three  ! 

As  we  turn  to  inspect  more  carefully  the  work  of 
this  old  Congregational   Church  and  Society    it   would 
appear    that    services  were  held  as  soon  as  the    church 
building  could  be  used,  perhaps  before  the  walls  were 
fully  covered,  for  this  often  happened  in  the  early  days, 
for  other  things  the  hearts  of  the  fathers  and  mothers 
away  from  the  old  home  scenes  could  wait ;  but  for  the 
church  and  voice  of  praise  and  prayer  they  could  not  de- 
lay.     It  may  be,  too,  that  the  first  meetings   in  the  town 
where  a  few  men  and  women  knelt  together  to  ask  God 
to  help  them.     We  find,  however,  that  John  Eliot  was 
on  probation  in  Chesterfield  soon  after  the  erection  of 
the  first  church  building.     The  people  liked  him,  as  well 
they  might,  with  such  a  name  as  that  of    John   Eliot. 
But  for  some  reason  which  is  wholly  unknown  to  us  at 
this  far  day  he  at  once  declined  their  invitation  to  be 
their  pastor.     The  message  was  given  in  the  clear,  de- 
cisive language    of    those    times,  and  the  people  knew 
that  after  that  they  need  not  stop  to  parley  with  him. 
Down  through  the  mighty  trees  he   rode,   but  no  shade 
of  discouragement  rested  on  the  faces  or  hearts  of  the 
firsUsettlers    here.     It    may  perhaps  be  well  for  us  to 
pause  and  read  this  first  ministerial  letter  in  the  history 
of  our  church  and  of  our  town.     Since  it  is  directed  to 
the  officers  of  the  town,  there  may  have  been  as  yet  no 
formal  organization  of  a  church :  this  is  the  letter  bear- 
ing the   inscription:     "Chesterfield,  20th  January,  1772. 
To  the  Selectmen  of  Chesterfield   in   the   Province 


of  New  Hampshire: 

Gentlemen : 

I  have  received  a  call  from  the  in- 
habitants of  Chesterfield  to  settle  among  them,  in  the 
Gospel  ministry,  and  having  taken  the  same  into  most 
serious  consideration,  for  various  and  most  important 
reasons  that  have  their  residence  in  my  breast,  you  re- 
ceive an  answer  to  said  call  in  the  negative;  so,  wishing 
that  all  the  dealings  of  Divine  Providence  might  be 
sanctified  to  you  and  the  people  of  this  place,  I  rest 
yours  in  the  fellowship  of  the  Gospel, 

John  Eliot." 

It  would  seem  that  at  once  the  people  set  about 
finding  a  minister  for  their  church,  for  soon  we  find 
among  these  hills  a  young  man  of  24  years,  from  Sud- 
bury, Mass.,  the  place  from  which  some  of  the  early  set- 
tlers no  doubt  came  hither.  This  is  the  Rev.  Abram 
Wood,  who  tarried  here  as  sole  pastor  of  the  church  for 
half  a  century.  On  the  12th  of  October,  1772,  he  was 
invited  by  the  town  to  the  pastorate  of  the  church  and 
on  the  17th  of  the  following  November  1772,  he  wrote 
his  letter  of  acceptance.  It  is  rather  too  long  to  be 
quoted  here,  but  you  may  find  it  in. the  history  of  the 
town,  and  it  will  be  well  for  you  to  study  its  earnest 
spirit  of  dependence  of  the  leadings  of  the  Divine  Spirit. 
Not  till  he  had  entered  upon  the  fifty-first  year  of  his 
ministry  did  he  have  any  assistance  in  his  labors.  Hav- 
ing become,  a  few  months  before  his  death,  unable  to 
attend  to  his  pastoral  duties,  Rev.  John  Walker  was  in- 
stalled as  colleague  pastor  April  30,  1823. 

Mr.  Wood,  however,  retained  his  ministry  until  his 
death,  which  took  place  October  18,  of  that  same  year, 
1823.  During  his  pastorate  324  persons  united  with 
this  church,  either  by  profession  of  faith  or  by  letter,  in- 
cluding those    members    when    he    was    ordained.      Of 


this  number  ['3l  were  males  and  193  were  females. 
The  number  of  persons  baptised  was  765.  The  largest 
number  baptised  in  one  year  was  64.  This  was  the 
year  1819,  and  shows  plainly  how  the  work  of  this  good 
man  went  on  with  increasing  power.  His  locks  were 
now  thin  and  white,  but  no  one  says  he  has  crossed  that 
line  where  he  ceases  to  be  useful.  His  helpfulness  is 
seen  still  more  clearly  if  we  remember  that  in  that  same 
year  of  1S19,  47  persons  were  admitted  to  the  church, 
which  was  the  largest  number  ever  admitted  in  one  year 
of  its  then  shining  history.  At  the  time  of  Mr.  Wood's 
death  the  church  had  113  members,  and  8  more  were 
admitted'during  the  year. 

For  the  first  nineteen  years  of  his  ministry  Mr. 
Wood  received  an  annual  salary  of  sixty-five  pounds. 
At  the  annual  town  meeting  in  March,  1792,  it  was  vot- 
ed to  make  the  salary  eighty  pounds.  From  1800  to 
181  2  the  average  sum  was  raised  yearly  by  taxation,  for 
the  support  of  preaching  was  about  $275. 

As  we  meet  here  to  day  with  grateful  hearts  before 
the  Father  of  all  mercies  we  cannot  but  feel,  as  we  re- 
view the  history  of  this  church  since  this  building  was 
first  planned,  that,  though  its  erection  and  continual 
work  have  meant  so  much  of  care  and  burden,  we  have 
still  great  reason  to  feel  that  the  labor  has  been  richly 
rewarded  in  the  faithfulness  of  those  who  before  this  al- 
tar have  sincerely  confessed  their  faith  in  theiiiLord  and 
Saviour,  Jesus  Christ.  All  such  have  steadily  grown  in 
grace  and  in  usefulness  in  the  Master's  vineyard.  Some 
of  these  we  have  seen  enter  triumphantly  into  the  eter- 
nal rest.  Some  have  gone  to  work  in  larger  fields  in 
this  and  other  states,  but  their  words  of  cheer  and  their 
gifts  remind  us  how  dear  was  this  home  church  to  them 
and  that  so  it  will  ever  continue  to  be.  Others  are  still 
with  us  to   whom   we   never  turn   without  finding  them 


8 

ready  to  assist  in  all  that  is  for  the  true  upbuilding  of 
the  church.  And  the  signs  of  cheer  which  we  find  in 
these  is,  and  ever  has  been,  well  exemplified  in  those 
who  have  united  with  the  church  by  letter.  Many  of 
these  came  from  large  churches,  but  helped  here  with  a 
cheer  which  meant  much  in  the  face  of  the  many  dificul- 
ties  which  they  found  in  the  presence  of  the  few,  though 
very  bright,  encouragements.  Such  have  not  only  kept 
their  faith  aglow  but  have  kindled  faith  in  other  hearts 
in  a  manner  that  gave  assurance  that  it  would  burn  stead- 

The  struggles  which  preceded  the  building  and  ded- 
ication of  this,  the  second  church  building  in  Chesterfield 
were  many.  Happily  the  traces  of  most  of  these  have 
been  entirely  erased  in  the  fleeting  years.  But  one  proof 
of  this  remains  in  the  very  meagre  bit  of  land  on  which 
the  church  stands.  This  admitted  the  erection  of  a 
house  upon  the  south  side  of  it  in  such  a  close  proximity 
that  it  shut  out  the  light  in  large  measure  and  led  to 
much  annoyance  during  the  services  from  time  to  time. 
Plainly  this  way  should  not  have  been  left  open  for  a  man 
to  express  his  hatred  of  the  church.  From  this  house 
the  church  has  been  more  than  once  endangered  by  fire. 

This  church  was  finally  completed  and  occupied  for 
the  first  time  in  Nov.,  1834.  Not  a  month  had  passed  a- 
way  before -the  resignation  of  the  pastor  was  read.  He 
was  the  l^ev.  Elihu  Smith,  and  had  been  installed  on  the 
23d  of  May,  1832.  Following  him  came  Josiah  Ballard 
who  was  ordained  on  the  5th  of  August,  1835,  but  whose 
pastoral  relations  with  the  church  were  dissolved  in  the 
spring  of  1836.  From  this  date  till  1842  preaching  ser- 
vices were  conducted  more  or  less  regularly  by  Rev. 
Hosea  Beckley,  On  August  31,  1842,  Rev.  Benjamin 
E.  Hale  was  ordained  as  pastor.  His  work  began  in  a 
very  encouraging  manner,  but  was  soon  opposed  by  some 


who  had  been  adverse  to  the  building  of  the  church,  and 
was  dismissed  at  his  own  request  on  Nov.  1 1,  1847.  1° 
the  five  years  which  followed  the  church  had  no  regular 
pastor,  but  the  work  was  kept  up  by  the  efforts  of  heroic 
few.  The  next  regular  pastor  was  the  Rev.  Ebenezer 
Newhall  who,  however,  resigned  in  less  than  two  years. 
Then,  for  nearly  four  years,  the  work  went  on  much  as 
it  had  before  Mr.  Newhall  came,  several  of  the  members 
attending  the  Methodist  church,  and  some  of  these  feel- 
ing  that  the  town  could  only  sustain  the  one  service. 
Nearly  all  of  these  however,  returned  to  this  church 
when,  in  April,  1858,  Rev.  Jeffries  Hall  began  work  as 
pastor.  His  sermons  were  of  a  very  direct  and  searching 
character,  and  those  he  guided  to  the  truth  were  of  stal- 
wart Christian  growth  indeed.  He  graduated  at  Am- 
herst College  in  1829,  at  Andover,  Mass.,  Theological 
Seminary  in  1832,  and  ordained  at  Hopkinton,  Mass.,  in 
1833.  He  resigned  his  position  as  pastor  in  1866,  but 
still  resided  in  the  town  until  his  death.  He  is  buried 
in  the  Old  South  Church  Cemetery  at  Andover,  Mass. 
Before  Mr.  H all's  resignation  the  services  were  sustain- 
ed only  by  great  effort,  after  his  work  closed  the  church 
entered  upon  a  long  period  of  shadow  in  which  the 
building  itself  was  much  neglected  and  only  a  very  few 
wrere  left  of  the  membership.  These  constantly  believed 
that  the  Lord  would  again  revive  his  work,  though  many 
triumphant  scoffers  said,  we  knew  this  building  was  not 
of  the  Lord,  and  it  will  crumble  to  the  ground.  Some 
offered  to  buy  it  as  a  shop  or  store  house.  This  was 
sturdily  refused.  The  wisdom  of  this  course  was  seen 
in  the  fall  of  1883  when  the  Rev.  Albert  E.  Hall  began 
work  as  pastor. 

Mr.  Hall's  work  was  preceded  by  three  months' 
work  bv  Mr.  Shaw,  a  student  of  Andover,  Mass.  Semi- 
nary.     This  was  the  first  preaching  which  had  been  in 


IO 

the  church  in  many  years.  There  were  at  this  date  but 
five  members  of  the  church  left,  and  only  two  of  these 
could  attend  services  by  reason  of  old  age,  and  by  living 
remote  from  the  place  of  meeting.  The  enterprise  of 
establishing  the  worship  of  God  in  t.he  house  of  the 
fathers  originated  in  the  hearts  of  a  few  courageous  folk 
most  of  whom  were  women,  who  believed  that  the  Lord 
would  help  those  who  tried  to  help  themselves,  and  who 
were  determined  to  do  their  best.  In  justice  to  many 
more  in  the  town  of  Chesterfield  it  may  be  said  that, 
when  the  enterprise  was  fairly  inaugurated  and  it  was 
seen  that  it  might  succeed,  willing  hands  were  reached 
forth  and  the  owners  of  them  worked  with  their  might. 
Through  the  efforts  of  the  Ladies'  Society  the  church 
was  rescued  from  dilapidation,  was  newly  shingled,  the 
outside  painted,  and  otherwise  repaired.  During  the 
spring  of  1883  the  ladies  began  work  upon  the  interior 
of  the  church,  repairing  the  windows,  painting  the  seats 
and  walls,  and  carpeting  the  aisles.  Just  at  this  time, 
the  organ,  which  is  still  used  in  the  church,  was  present- 
ed to  it  by  friends  in  Hinsdale,  N.  H.,  who  had  formerly 
been  residents  in  Chesterfield.  Mr.  John  B.  Fiske  had 
much  to  do  in  securing  this  very  helpful  gift.  Later, 
there  was  given  to  the  church,  apparatus  for  properly 
lighting  the  church  and  lamps  for  use  in  the  vestibule. 
Steadily  and  hopefully  this  work  went  forward  from  day 
to  day.  Best  of  all  was  the  spirit  of  harmony  which  pre- 
vailed-among  the  workers  for  the  Master,  and  which 
seemed  constantly  giving  it  light  and  cheer  throughout 
the  town.  The  attendance  at  church  grew  in  a  very 
happy  manner,  the  Sabbath  School  became  a  source  of 
great  power,  and  the  prayer  tneetings  were  very  helpful 
in  all  ways.  On  the  12th  of  December,  1883,  the  pastor 
Rev.  Mr.  Hall,  wrote,  "It  is  evident  that  the  Lord  is  in 
this  work,  and  the  promise  for  the  future  of  this  church 


1 1 

is  decidedly  encouraging." 

Mr.  Hall's  work  in  the  church  had  begun  Nov.  i, 
1883,  and  the  signs  of  hope  which  he  saw  were  realized 
in  the  months  which  followed  in  a  very  glorious  manner 
At  the  communion  service  Dec.  2nd,  1883,  ten  members 
were  received  into  church  membership,  half  of  these  on 
confession  of  faith.  Several  of  these  became  workers 
for  the  Master  whose  light  was  .never  dim;  Mrs.  Hannah 
Atherton  Goodrich  was  one  of  these  and  in  sickness  and 
trial  her  faith  was  ever  strong.  Mrs.  Martha  Saulisbury 
was  another  whose  helpfulness  will  never  be  forgotton. 
Another  was  Mrs.  Celissa  M.  Stoddard,  who  was  receiv- 
ed by  letter  from  the  Congregational  Church  at  Walpole, 
N.  H.,  and  her  good  works  have  been  of  precious  help 
in  all  forms  of  church  work.  She  has  lived  to  see  her 
children  become  devoted  members  of  the  church,  and 
she  is  seldom  absent  from  our  services,  though  the  jour- 
ney to  church  is  no  slight  one. 

On  January  6,  1884,  nine  more  friends  were  admit- 
ted to  church  membership,  one  of  them,  Mrs.  Otis  Saff- 
ord,  was,  until  just  before  her  death,  one  of  the  most 
faithful  Bible  scholars  and  attentive  listeners  in  the 
church. 

The  church  continued  to  grow  in  a  very  encourag- 
ing manner,  and  the  Sabbath  School  was  a  source  of  joy 
to  all.  On  Sunday  evening,  July  5th,  the  School  gave 
a  Concert  Exercise,  "Jesus,  the  Light  of  the  World," 
which  was  finely  presented  to  a  large  audience.  The 
clerk  of  the  church  writes  at  this  time,  "  The  School  has 
received  a  new  impulse  from  monthly  concerts,  and  is 
increased  in  members  and  effectiveness." 

During  this  time  services  had  been  carried  on  in  a 
very  encouraging  manner  at  Factory  Village,  now  Spoff- 
ord,  N.  H.  In  January,  1886,  the  clerk  writes,  "Prayer 
meetings  are  held  in  both  villages  each  week,  and  both 


12 


Sunday  Schools  are  prosperous  and  interesting.  Feel- 
ino-  o-rateful  for  the  blessings  which  have  been  bestowed 
upon  us  as  a  church ;  and  as  individuals,  we  would  pray 
to  the  giver  of  all  good  that  these  may  continue  through 
the  coming  year." 

On  January,  1887,  the  clerk  writes,  "The  church 
has  prospered  well  during  the  past  year.  All  the  church 
services  have  been  well  remembered,  still  there  seemed 
to  be  a  feeling  of  dissatisfaction  on  the  part  of  some  to- 
ward the  minister,  but  the  Society  extended  a  call  to 
him,  which  was  ratified  by  the  church." 

In  the  last  of  these  words  is  the  first  note  of  discord 
which  is  found  in  the  church  records  during  the  work 
of  one  of  the  Master's  most  faithful  servants.  Those 
who  had  been  displeased  with  the  work  which  was, 
preaching  to  every  farm  on  the  hills  finding  they  could 
influence  one  here  and  there,  kept  upon  the  work  until 
the  grieved  pastor,  whose  labors  had  been  so  incessant 
read  his  resignation  at  the  this,  the  Center  Church.  He 
however,  preached  at  the  Factory  some  time  longer,  and 
there  received  some  very  useful  members  to  the  church. 

Many  a  year  has  since  slipped  by,  but  no  one  can 
visit  among  the  people  in  either  village,  or  upon  the 
farms  east  or  west,  without  finding  the  proofs  of  the  good 
work  wrought  by  Mr.  Hall,  who  had  been  truly  guided 
of  God  in  his  work.  In  this  time  of  service  31  members 
were  added  to  the  church,  and  the  hope  in  God  planted 
in  many  others  who  later  on  came  to  confess  Him  before 
the  altar.  There  are  those  here  who  still  remember 
their  old  pastor  with  the  deepest  gratitude. 

On  the  8th  of  May,  1888,  Rev.  John  W.  Barron  was 
called  to  the  pastorate  of  the  church  and  his  letter  of  ac- 
ceptance was  dated  May  15,  1888.  He  was  ordained 
and  installed  as  pastor  of  the  church  on  the  29th  of  June 
following.     On  September  26,  1889,  Mr.  Barron's  letter 


13 

of  resignation  was  read  and  duly  accepted  on  the  8th 
of  the  following  October.  During  the  time  of  Mr.  Bar- 
ron's labor  some  very  helpful  members  were  added  to  the 
church.  Mrs.  Elvira  Puffer  and  Mrs.  Rose  Safford  be- 
ing of  that  number  and  every  ready  to  help  in  all  things 
for  the  good  of  the  church-?  Mrs.  Puffer  has  now  passed 
to  her  eternal  reward,  but  is  warmly  and  tenderly  re- 
membered by  all  who  knew  of  her  faith  and  hope.  Mrs. 
Safford  has  been  our  organist  for  many  years,  and  of 
great  help  in  the  Sunday  School  work. 

During  this  pastorate  a  parsonage  was  purchased 
at  Factory  Village  by  the  generosity  of  friends  here  and 
in  other  towns.  This  was  indeed  a  great  step  in  ad- 
vance. 

The  next  record  which  follows  the  dismission  of 
Mr.  Barron  from  the  pastorate  of  the  church  is  as  fol- 
lows :  "  The  church  was  without  services  from  October 
1889,  to  January,  1890,  when  Rev.  A.  T.  Hillman  sup- 
plied the  church  for  two  Sabbaths,  after  which,  arrange- 
ments were  made  with  Rev.  George  W.  Ruland  of 
Westmoreland,  N.  H.,  to  preach  at  the  Factory  Village 
Sabbath  afternoons,  Mr.  Ruland  also  preached  in  the 
church  from  time  to  time,  At  the  close  of  his  labors 
Rev.  Mr.  B.  W.  Pennock  was  acting  pastor  of  the 
church  for  some  nine  months.  The  outlook  seemed 
very  discouraging  to  him,  owing  to  the  removal  .to 
Keene,  N.  H.,  of  much  of  the  business  at  the  Factory. 
Several  members  moved  away,  or  were  planning  to  leave. 
Some  services  by  Seminary  students  were  conducted 
from  time  to  time  as  they  had  been  at  the  close  of  other 
pastorates.  This  continued  until  the  present  pastor 
Kev.  Mr.  Chas.  N.  Sinnet  was  sent  to  take  the  place 
by  Rev.  Mr.  Hillman,  Secretary  of  the  N.  H.  Home 
Missionary  Society. 

The  pastor  remembers  well  the  dark  4th  of  June, 


H 

1 89 1,  when  he  met  here  a  little  handful  of  people  and 
listened  to  their  discouraging  reports  in  regard  to  keep- 
ing open  the  church  beyond  the  month  of  September 
following.  There  had  been  no  Sunday  School  for  some 
time,  the  prayer  meetings  had  been  abandoned  and  it 
seemed  difficult  to  secure  money  for  the  benefit  of  the 
church.  But  it  was  found  that  there  were  those  of  the 
same  stamp  as  the  heroic  few  of  18S3,  out  of  whose  la- 
bors had  grown  such  a  wonderful  harvest.  The  congre- 
gation increased,  the  Sunday  School  was  inaugurated 
with  hope  which  has  never  deceived  us,  alid  many  are 
the  good  prayer  meetings  which  have  been  held. 

It  was  thought  best  to  continue  the  services  for 
three  months  after  September,  1891,  and  then  the  limit 
of  work  was  extended  to  one  year,  and  it  has  thus  con- 
tinued to  the  present  date,  when  we  find  the  old  church 
painted  by  the  generosity  of  friends  who  gathered  here 
Old  Home  Day,  and  papered  and  beautified  by  the  gen- 
erosity of  other  friends;  the  leader  in  this  work  being 
our  ever  valient  and  faithful  Mrs.  Mary  C.  Smith.  Dur- 
ing this  period,  new  pew  cushions  have  been  purchased 
of  the  Walpole,  N.  H.  church,  new  Hymn  Books  given 
by  the  First  Congregational  Church  in  Keene,  and 
many  other  tokens  of  progress  seen.  The  work  has 
been  reorganized  at  Spofford,  with  the  largest  Sunday 
School  ever  gathered  there,  and  an  Endeavor  Society 
organized  which  promises  much  help  for  the  church  in 
comino-  days.  Thirteen  new  members  have  been  added 
to  the  church,  and  some  of  these  are  of  the  sturdiest 
type  of  Christianity. 


